Liner for an air fryer food basket

Abstract

A removable, flexible heatproof liner sheet 1, suitable for multiple designs of Air Fryer. Perforations 4 allow air flow and slits 3 towards the edges permit said liner to conform to a variety of shapes and sizes of Air Fryer basket. For a circular sheet (Figure 3, 5), radial slits (Figure 3, 3) allow the overlap of edge sections to form the basket shape. For rectangular sheets, slits will be at the corners extending toward the centre. By forming a basket shape and overlapping the sections of the sheet the food cavity is created with a sealing layer to prevent oil residue from escaping. Said liner may be formed of woven PTFE or silicon to be cleanable and reusable.

Description

This invention relates to a liner for the food receptacle of an Air Fryer cooking device as an aid to cleaning the said receptacle or basket. The background to the invention is that in recent years Air Fryers have become very popular as a healthy and efficient way to heat certain foods. However, there is always a residue remaining in the receptacle housing the cooked food which will require periodic cleaning. When using an Air Fryer, the oil can drip off of the food into the fryer and can be very hard to clean because the oil becomes sticky and leaves discolorations. Soap or detergent does not always remove the residue and often takes the use of cleaning materials, soaking, and scrubbing to remove any grease. In order to avoid this additional work a flexible liner is herein provided which can conform to a variety of shapes and sizes of Air Fryer without reducing the amount of air flow required to heat and cook the foodstuffs. While there are many patents claiming the invention of an Air Fryer, very few mention a filter or liner in the sense of a separate reusable or disposable liner. The only one found in searches which does so is US2023064900A1 COOPER that provides an Air Fryer liner comprising a unitary sheet of aluminum foil lining an interior of an Air Fryer inner basket comprising a circumferential liner floor with an outer edge positioned horizontally on a floor of the Air Fryer inner basket and liner walls extending vertically from the outer edge of the circumferential liner floor, covering walls of the Air Fryer inner basket. As such it is distinct from the present invention. USD984196S WANG claims an ornamental design for an Air Fryer liner, as shown and described. It is shown rectangular and equipped with a handle, having stepped walls and featuring linear apertures at the base and as shown it is not flexible. USD999019S HUANG claims the ornamental design for an Air Fryer silicone liner, as shown and described. It is shown rectangular, being wider at the top edge and equipped with vertically fluted corners and apertures on the base, laid out in a square shape. It would only fit a specific Air Fryer. CN219613670U ZHU et al. provides an Air Fryer, which is provided with a chute under the protective net. The oil filter can be inserted into the chute horizontally and suspended under the protective net. As such, the flat circular filter shown is distinct from the present invention. CN218390795U YING shows an Air Fryer that is easy to clean, featuring a filter cartridge installed at the bottom of the side wall, and a filter element being installed in the inside of the filter cartridge. However, this is distinguished from the current invention because of the flat circular filter and its permanent adaption to the specific Air Fryer. According to the present invention there is provided a sheet of PTFE or similar woven material, silicone or other flexible heat resistant materials perforated and tailored to conform to the wide variety of shapes and sizes of Air Fryer available. Said sheet will line the base and partially line the sides of the basket of the Air Fryer. Said sheet is shaped to form a rectangle preferably with the corners radiused and featuring slits at said corners or to form a circular sheet with slits spaced radially around the circumference. In one embodiment the liner is unperforated in order to function as a drip tray liner to be fitted below the primary embodiment while in its primary embodiment it is perforated to permit free air flow through the Air Fryer and hence to cook the foodstuff effectively. All primary embodiments feature slits; at the corners of the rectangular liners and circumferentially around the circular liners. While the liner has been found to work most effectively with slits at the corners of the rectangular liners, slits in other locations would be within the scope of this patent. Likewise the slits around the circumferential edge of the circular liner may be of any number, although it has been found that eight (8) slits will allow the liner to work most effectively. The length of the slits may vary according to the proposed application but will typically be between thirty (30) and fifty (50) millimetres in length. The perforations are arranged in either a rectangular or a circular pattern depending on the shape of the liner, to maintain even airflow and may range in size from 0.1 centimetres to 2 centimetres in diameter, although 0.5 to 1 centimetre diameter has been found to be most effective. The perforations will preferably be circular, although other shapes may be used, such as oval, square, or rectangular. Once the liner has been inserted to line the interior of the Air Fryer basket, a foodstuff may be placed into the lining. The liner is laid into the receptacle or basket of the Air Fryer in such a way that the edges conform to the sides of said receptacle by rising up the sides thereof and overlaying the adjacent section of the said liner, thereby forming a seal to prevent oil residue from escaping. Once the food has been placed into the liner within the basket, the basket is placed within the Air Fryer and the Air Fryer may then be energised to cook the food. When the food has been cooked, the basket can be removed and the food may be removed from the liner, or the entire liner may be carefully removed from the Air Fryer basket. The liner may then be re-used, cleaned or eventually disposed of. In the following drawings it is not intended to exclude features from another Figure from each specific embodiment but rather to provide a basis for their combination in specific applications. While the invention has been disclosed in its preferred form, it is to be understood that the specific embodiment thereof, as described and illustrated herein, is not to be considered in a limited sense, as there may be other forms or modifications of the invention which should also be construed to come within the scope of the appended claims. Specific embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 shows the invention in rectangular form; Figure 2 shows the invention in rectangular form with the addition of perforations to allow free air flow. Figure 3 shows the invention in circular form featuring perforations to allow free air flow. Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 shows the most basic embodiment of the invention. The liner 1 is rectangular in shape with slits 3 at each corner. Said liner 1 may equally be circular in shape. In this embodiment the liner will only function as an additional drip tray if necessary. Figure 2 shows an embodiment of liner 1 in rectangular form having radiused corners 2 and slits 3 at each corner. Perforations 4 are featured as before described in order to allow free passage of air. Figure 3 shows the embodiment of a circular liner 5 having slits 3 arrayed radially around the circumference of the liner 5. Perforations 4 are featured as before described in order to allow free passage of air.

Claims

Claim 1. A removable flexible heatproof liner for the food receptacle or basket of an Air Fryer having perforations for air flow and featuring slits towards the edges which permit said liner to conform to a variety of shapes and sizes of Air Fryer.Claim 2. A removable flexible liner of rectangular shape as claimed in Claim 1 for the food receptacle or basket of an Air Fryer, with or without radiused corners having slits towards the edge at each corner which permit said liner to conform to a variety of sizes of Air Fryer having a rectangular receptacle or basket.Claim 3. A circular removable flexible liner as claimed in Claim 1 for the food receptacle or basket of an Air Fryer of circular shape having slits arrayed radially towards the edge of the circumference which permit said liner to conform to a variety of sizes of Air Fryer having a circular receptacle or basket.Claim 4 A removable flexible liner as claimed in Claim 1 for the food receptacle or basket of an Air Fryer of a shape other than circular or rectangular with or without radiused corners having slits towards the edge at each comer which permit said liner to conform to a variety of shapes and sizes of Air Fryer.Claim 5 A removable flexible liner as claimed in any previous claim formed of woven PTFE (Polytetrafluoride) sheet material.Claim 6 A removable flexible liner as claimed in claims 1,2, 3, or 4 formed of silicone or similar heatproof material.Claim 7 The method of using a removable liner in an Air Fryer featuring the stages of:Placing the liner on the base of the interior of the Air Fryer inner basket in such a way that the edges of the liner conform to the sides of said receptacle by rising up the sides thereof and overlaying the adjacent section of the said liner, thereby forming a sealing layer to prevent oil residue from escaping;placing food into the liner within the basket or receptacle;the basket, liner and food are placed within the cavity of the Air Fryer;the Air Fryer may then be energised to cook the food;when the food has been cooked, the basket can be removed from the Air Fryer;the food may be removed from the liner and served;the entire liner may be removed from the Air Fryer basket;the liner may be re-used, cleaned or eventually disposed of.

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